Drive-chain and wheel.



. No..772,5oo,- 'PATENTED 001 1a, 1904.

-QLQUSBl M DRIVE CHAIN AND WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED 0018. 1903.

N0 MODEL:

v ffamuel] [201mb p ATTORNEYS inc-772,500.

UNITED STATES IPatented October 18, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE. V

DRIVE-CHAIN AND WHEEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 772,500, dated October 18, 1904.

Application filed October 8, 1903. Serial No.'l'76,19l. (No model.) 7

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, SAMUEL F. CLOUSER, a citizen of the'United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State'of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Drive-Chains and Wheels,

of which the following is a specification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which it apper tains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to power mechanism, and particularly to whatare known as drivechains and wheels in connection with which such chains operate; and the object thereof is to provide an improved mechanism of this class in which the chain consists of separate links detachably connected and the wheels in connection with which the chain operates are provided with'transverse cogs, the links of the chain being also provided with knuckles which operate in connection with said cogs. I

The invention is fully disclosed in the, following specification, of which the accompany ing drawings form a part, in which the-separate parts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference characters in each of the views, and in which' Figure l is a sectional side view of a device embodying my inventio'n; Fig. 2, atransverse section of the rim of one of the wheels shown.

in Fig. 1 and taken on the line 2 2, and Fig. 3 a plan view of one of the links of my im proved chain.

In the practice of my invention I provide a chain made up of separate links a, all of said links being exactly of the same shape and construction. Each of the links consists of a body portion a having a central opening a and provided at one end with a cross-bar c and at the other end with a hook member a. The hook member a opens upwardly and in the direction of the body of the link, and the throat, which is shown at a, extends transversely of the top portion of the link and is projected at an acute angle to the longitudinal axis of the link, and the bar a at the opposite end of the link is substantially elliptical in cross-section or of greater diameter in one direction than in the other. The bar a is also of greater diameter in one direction than the width ofthe open space a, which leads into the hook a, and in order to connect two links made in this way the said links are so held that the bar-a of one link will pass into the hook portion or member a of the other link through the open space a, and in order to do this one of the links must be held in a substantially upright position with reference to the other link, and when all of the links of the chain have been connected in this manner the position of said links when the chain is viewed from the side, as shown in Fig. 1, will be such that the links cannot be separated, as the bars a" of one link will be held in the hook' portion a of the adjacent link, with its greater diameter turned in the direction of the opening a", and in order to separate the links of the chain the chain must be long enough between two or more Wheels to permit of folding it. so that the links may be disconnected, as hereinbefore described. Each of the links of the chain is also provided on the side thereof opposite the opening-a with a knuckle a], and this knuckle is formed on the bottom of the hook member of the link and extends over the entire area thereof. The wheels over and in connection with which the chain operates, and two of which are shown in the drawings and designated by the reference character 6, are provided with side flanges Z2 which form an annular groove in which the chain moves, and these wheels are also provided between the flanges 6 with transverse cogs or teeth I), be-.

tween which are transverse sockets or depresslons 6*, of less diameter than the annular groove and designed to receive the knucv kles a and the operation will be readily untion with the cogs 6 which serve in place of the ordinary sprockets of ordinary sprocketwheels.

The distinctive features of my invention consist of the knuckles don the separate links of the chain and the cogs 6 in connection with which the said knuckles operate, and it will be understood that any shape or style of transverse members or cogs on the wheels in connection with which the knuckles a will operate may be substituted for the transverse cogs 6 shown in the drawings, and various other changes in and modifications of the form of the wheels herein shown and described may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention or sacrificing its advantages.

The distinctive feature of my invention consists in the construction of the separate links of which the drive-chain is composed. These links comprise two parts, a link portion and a hook portion, said link and said hook por tion being of the same length and the plane of the link portion extending through the central part of the hook portion, the opening into the hook portion being at one side of said plane and the opposite side of the hook portion beingformed into a knuckle which serves as a sprocket and also to strengthen said hook portion and link portion, and it will be observed that that part of the hook portion which is connected with the link portion is as wide as the link portion and tapers inwardly to the point of the knuckle. This construction makes a link which is very strong, the hook portion being just as strong or stronger than the link portion, and the method of forming said link portion and hook portion also strengthens the link portion.

By means of this construction I provide a drive-chain having great strength and durability and also a power mechanism of the class described which is simple in construction and operation and which will operate smoothly and is not apt to get out of order or frequently need repair, and it will also be observed that the cogs (0 on the separate links of the chain give strength to the hook members a and render the chain stronger than it would be if the links were made in the same manner as other links of this class.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A drive-chain formed of a series of detachably-conn ected links each of which comprises a body portion having a central opening and provided at one end with a cross-bar to which the next adjacent link is connected, said cross-bar being elliptical in cross-section and having its major diameter extending in a direction vertically of the link, each of said links also having a hook portion integral with said body portion and including ahook proper arranged at one face and spaced from the body portion to form a throat projected atan acute angle to the longitudinal axis of the link, the outer end of said throat being of less width than the inner end thereof, whereby to connect the next adjacent link the latter must be swung to a position substantially at right angles to the plane of the link to permit its crossbar entering said throat, and when swung to a plane coincident with the link is locked against displacementfrom the throat, the other face of said hook portion having a knuckle formed thereon and extendingover the entire area of the hook portion, said knuckle serving as a sprocket and strengthening the hook portion.

2. In an apparatus of the class described, the combination with a plurality of wheels, each of which is provided with peripheral flanges at its edges forming an annular groove, and having a series of sprockets or depressions arranged at the bottom of said groove and of less width than the latter, whereby a series of cogs or teeth is formed in said groove, of a drive-chain fittingin thegrooves ofsaid wheels and comprising a series of connected links,caeh of said links comprising a body portion having a central opening and provided at one end with a cross-bar to which the next adjacent link is connected, said cross-bar being elliptical in cross-section and having its major diameter extending in a direction vertically of the link, each of said links also having ahook portion integral with said body portion and including a hook proper arranged atone face and spaced from the body portion to form a throat projected at an acute angle to the longitudinal axis of the link, the outer end of said throat being of less width than the inner end thereof, whereby to connect the next adjacent link the latter must be swung to a position substantially at rightangles to the plane of the link to permit its cross-bar entering said throat, and when swung to a plane coincident with the link is locked against displacement from the threat, the other face of said hook portion having a knuckle formed thereon and extending over the entire area of the hook portion, said knuckles serving as sprockets and being adapted to enter and lit the sockets or depressions of the wheels during the travel of the chain, the body portion of said links also fitting within the flanges of the wheels whereby lateral displacement of the chain is prevented.

in testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name, in pres ence of the subscribing witnesses, this 6th day of October, 1908.

SAMUEL F. CLOUSER.

Witnesses:

F. A. STEWART, C. E. MULREANY. 

